Puff Pastry Dough

Ingredients:

A) The dough

• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup cool water
• 1/2 cup + 1 Tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice or white vinegar

B) The butter

• 3 cups unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup all-purpose flour

Methods:

A) The dough

• 1) Blend all of the ingredients together on low speed (with dough mixer)
• 2)  Once blended, increase the speed one level and mix for 4 minutes
• 3) Shape the dough into an 8-inch square, wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes, up to 2 hours.

B) The butter

• 1) Beat the butter with the flour with the paddle until smooth
• 2) Line an 8-inch square pan with plastic and scrape the butter into the pan, spreading to level (as it will be soft)
• 3) Chill this until it is the same consistency as the dough (30 to 90 minutes)
• 4) To use, let it sit and soften outside to just cooler than room temperature

C) The Assemble

• 1) Remove the butter from the pan onto a well-floured work surface
• 2) Dust a heavy rolling pin with flour and roll the butter into a rectangle about 16x9 inches
• 3) Lift the butter occasionally to ensure it isn’t sticking to the work surface (after the first roll, it does not stick at all) 
• 4) Place the dough in the centre of the butter and fold the butter over to completely envelope the dough 
• 5) Roll the dough out to a rectangle 20x10-inches, flouring the dough and work surface as needed
• 6) Fold into thirds, but be sure to dust off any excess flour with a pastry brush before folding
• 7) Rotate the dough 90 degrees and repeat rolling the dough to a 20x10-inch rectangle, brushing off and folding into thirds
• 8) Wrap the dough, label it with a #1 (for first fold) and chill for a minimum of 2 hours up to a day
• 9) Second fold, roll the dough again into a 20x10-inch rectangle, brush off excess flour and fold into thirds
• 10) Rotate the dough 90 degrees, repeat the rolling and folding and then wrap and label the dough with a #2 and chill for a minimum of 2 hours and up to a day
• 11) For the final fold, roll and fold the dough the dough into thirds for the final time (just once this time)
• 12) Wrapped and chilled for a minimum of 2 hours before using

Info:

1) Can keep refrigerated for up to 4 days, or can be portioned and frozen for up to 3 months

2) Thaw in the fridge before using